Local students headed to inauguration

Inauguration fever is setting in, and local college students are jumping on the bandwagon. Here’s a post by Melissa Monroe-Young, a spokeswoman for Northwest Vista College, about students who turned what they thought was an impossible dream into reality:

Five Northwest Vista College students will join much of the nation as they watch President-Elect Barack Obama take the oath of office as president of the United States. But the San Antonio students will be watching from the crowd instead of their televisions.

From holding last-minute fundraisers and with funding from the Alamo Community College district, four students from the NVC History Club and four from NVC Project Dem (democrats) will head to Philadelphia Jan. 16 and then to D.C. for the inauguration. NVC history instructor Carlos Acosta and Chadwick Cardenas of the Teaching & Learning area will join the students.

The students going are Brittany Trainer, Samuel Zapata, Joseph Mendoza, Desiree Franks and Rajah Greer. Debborah Lugo, who founded the NVC History Club and is now enrolled at UTSA, is going but paying her own way.

“This trip felt like it was so impossible. We started planning in October and we first looked in D.C., but the hotels were incredibly expensive.” Lugo said. “This is a moment you can’t re-live again by seeing the first African-American president.”

Despite her doubts that the trip would happen, Lugo put in a request to the college district for funding thanks to the encouragement of Kelly Blanco, NVC’s assistant coordinator of Student Leadership & Activities. To her surprise, ACC chancellor Bruce Leslie made a surprise announcement at a recent student meeting saying funding was granted.

Lugo said during the trip, the students will see historical sites in Philadelphia such as the Liberty Bell and the Congress Hall.

History instructor Carlos Acosta said the students are excited about the trip and worked hard to pull it off in a short amount of time. He said they sold entertainment books and raffled a Christmas tree to raise money. He added the trip wouldn’t have been possible without the effort of the students and the support of NVC employees.

“We are all pumped up and really excited about going,” Acosta said. “A lot of the students haven’t been to Washington, D.C. or out of the state of Texas. Getting to any inauguration can be very difficult with all the security, but seeing the first African American become president is very special and that is why it’s that much more important to go.”